Recipe books

Recipe books are often personal records kept by female members
of wealthy families. The books act as memory aids, to record
favourite dishes and new culinary experiences.

Recipe books displayed in our food history exhibition dated from
the 17th century to the 1940s, and include manuscripts such as:

Sarah Reddie's recipe book — started in 1847

Malcolm of Burnfoot family books — written by four generations
of the Malcolm family

Elgin Pastry Book, 1734.

Food preservation

Preservation was a very important part of Scots cookery in the
days before refrigerators.

Fish was salted and smoked, meat was cured, and jams, chutneys
and preserves ensured surplus seasonal produce was preserved for
future use.

Forgotten flavours

Included in the recipes on display were Scottish traditional
dishes which many will still recognise today.

Other dishes in the exhibition are now less well-known: mock turtle soup and powsowdie
(sheeps heid broth) have now faded in popularity. Such dishes often
highlight frugal times, where all parts of an animal were used in
cooking and nothing was wasted.

Recipe books were on show in 'Lifting the lid', our exhibition
on Scotland's food history, which ran at the National Library from
12 June to 8 November 2015.